Thermococcus kodakarensis mutants deficient in di-myo-inositol phosphate use aspartate to cope with heat stress.

ABSTRACT: Many of the marine microorganisms which are adapted to grow at temperatures above 80 degrees C accumulate di-myo-inositol phosphate (DIP) in response to heat stress. This led to the hypothesis that the solute plays a role in thermoprotection, but there is a lack of definitive experimental evidence. Mutant strains of Thermococcus kodakarensis (formerly Thermococcus kodakaraensis), manipulated in their ability to synthesize DIP, were constructed and used to investigate the involvement of DIP in thermoadaptation of this archaeon. The solute pool of the parental strain comprised DIP, aspartate, and alpha-glutamate. Under heat stress the level of DIP increased 20-fold compared to optimal conditions, whereas the pool of aspartate increased 4.3-fold in response to osmotic stress. Deleting the gen

SUBMITTER: Borges N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2798264 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature